Tech startup Zaraye raises $2.1 million
Pakistani commodity sourcing platform Zaraye has raised $2.1m in pre-seed funding which it will use to hire new staff, grow its technology and scale the business across multiple categories in its market, according to a report from Tech Funding News Thursday, April 14. .
Tiger Global and Zayn Capital led the fundraising effort, with participation in the round from +92 Ventures, Alan Rutledge, Jack Rizvi and current and former Careem employees. This is Tiger Global’s first pre-seed investment in Pakistan, the report said.
“We aim to strengthen the backbone of the country’s economy by helping entrepreneurs find ways to optimize and scale,” said Ahsan Ali Khan, co-founder and CEO of Zaraye, in the report. “Zaraye will help our partners compete locally and globally as they find more savings in time and money to create the best products.
“With the confidence of incredible investors in Zaraye, we are ready to strengthen our mission to reach millions of users,” he said.
Zaraye was founded in 2021 by university friends Taha Iqbal Teli, Hashair Junaid Ahmedani and Khan, who have also worked together several times during their academic and professional careers.
“Small and medium business owners have been trapped in a cycle of high competition and lack of financing options,” Ahmedani said in the report. “Zaraye aims to help these companies scale as they find the effectiveness of sourcing and financing options to make better decisions for their businesses.”
Teli says Zaraye’s goal is to help entrepreneurs “focus on making and selling their products.”
Related: Pakistani company BNPL QisstPay expands to the United States
In February, Pakistani start-up Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) QisstPay entered the United States with an online shopping tool for retailers: a one-click payment product that will help the business grow in North American markets and will help increase its workforce from 150 to 350 by the end of the year.
Last year, QisstPay raised $15 million in pre-seed and seed funding rounds. The company also recently opened an office in Bangladesh.
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